Finn Slough Heritage &
Wetland Society

( Graphic by David Roberts )

Life on the Fraser

(The links below will take
you to photos by Ulrich Gaede)

Finn Slough Heritage & Wetland Society was formed in
September 1993 to preserve the natural environment and habitat at
the Slough (pronounced "slew") and surrounding area. The group also
aims to maintain the heritage values of the community and to
protect the Slough from urban encroachment.

Finn Slough is one of
the last tidal communities on the West Coast. We are working to
live in harmony with the environment on a sleepy little backwater
on the mighty Fraser River in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada.
Originally established in the 1880s by immigrant fishers
from Finland, Finn Slough has been a fishing village for over a
hundred years. Families
have continuously occupied Finn Slough since then. The community
swelled to 70 households in the 1940s and 50s but by the 1970s the original settlers were dispersing. Non Finnish fishers and people who appreciated the Sloughs unspoiled historic appearance began to take their place. The Finns eventually
stopped living at the waters edge and moved to more permanent
homes within a few miles of the Slough. Today Finn Slough holds
special status as it is the last working commercial fishing village
on the Fraser River. Approximately 50 people live and work at the
Slough with 18 households remaining. Here you will see gillnet fish boats, net
mending floats and sheds belonging to fifth generation Finnish fishers.

The Slough is bounded on the Fraser River side by Gilmour
Island and on the north by a dyke built to protect Richmond.
Access to homes on the Gilmour Island side of the Slough is by a wooden draw-bridge,
creating a definite sense of isolation from the nearby urban
areas of Richmond and Vancouver. The unique and eclectic dwellings are neighborly
and built on a human scale. They either float or are supported by
pilings with the tidal waters of the Fraser river rising and
falling beneath them. Some of these homes have been converted
from old net sheds and some are the original scow houses used by
the Finns. Our community is a good example of harmonious
coexistence between nature and people in a semi-urban setting.

Recently local fishers have donated several historic buildings
to the Heritage and Wetland Society for preservation. Included is
a float containing a rare net-soaking
tank made of cedar. It was used to keep linen gillnets from
falling apart by soaking them in a Blue Stone (copper sulfate)
solution. This was before the advent of nylon nets and
environmental awareness. We are in the process of creating a
living museum by restoring and maintaining these and other
heritage features.

Al Mason, a resident here, has made an interesting trade with
Gus Jacobson a Finnish fisher with long ties to Finn Slough. Al
agreed to trade a working scale model (29.5 inches) of the EVA for the
real thing (29.5 feet). Gus had been looking for a good home for
the boat ever since he transferred the fishing license to his
present gill-netter. This was because of a change in the fishing regulations
when area fishing was set up on the West Coast. Al, a shipwright
who has repaired EVA in the past, has had his eye on the boat for
years and jumped at the chance to take ownership. The EVA is a
twenty-eight foot wooden gill-netter built in 1937. This boat is
powered by an original two
cylinder Easthope engine. "Easthope"
was a local company that manufactured some of the first gasoline
engines used to power the West Coast fishing fleet and became a
legend in the industry.

The entire area has been classified as "Red Zone", a
designation reserved for the most valuable fish habitat. This has
been assigned with the current community's presence taken into
account. The actual space
used by buildings is quite small compared to the natural
wetlands. From 1880 to 1993 our community has quietly existed on
the edge of the Fraser River without official status or land
tenure. We are presently involved in a process to obtain Crown
leases for our dwellings. At the moment of writing nothing has
been resolved, however, the dialogue continues. The trade-off for
obtaining leases will probably be the promise of upgrading the
community services to more modern standards. One of the first
improvements the residents made was to install composting toilets
in order to reduce our impact on the ecosystem here. We are now
working on a five year master plan to accomplish the remaining
upgrades. The challenge we face is to upgrade without changing
the character of Finn Slough, as it is the uniqueness of the
place that has kept the community together.

The situation at Finn Slough has changed. Until recently we have been
involved in a process of negotiating to obtain leases for the heritage buildings
and residences here at Finn Slough from the Fraser River Port Authority. This
has broken down as one of the upland owners (Toronto developer, Stephen Smith of
"Smith Prestige") has stated that he will deny the Slough the
permissions necessary to obtain these leases. The Fraser River Harbour Authority
has now stated its intention is to proceed as soon as possible to bring the
question of lease acquisition to a close by evicting the residents and fishers
and is demanding the destruction of the heritage buildings at Finn Slough.

This is a time when the help of public opinion and exposure (which had been
held back during the talks) is sorely needed. We are asking for your support in
voicing your concerns to the possible dismantling of an important heritage
village. We have prepared a sample letter to the Fraser River Port Authority and
the Minister of Environment, Lands and Parks which you can copy and print as is
or modify to your liking. Please print your name, sign this letter, providing
your address, and send it to the addresses provided at your earliest
convenience. Your help is much appreciated.

Thank you from the Directors of the Finn Slough Heritage & Wetland
Society.

We have been gathering historical information to get an idea of the extent of the Finnish habitation here at Finn Slough. David Dorrington, our historian in residence has been doing a fantastic job of sleuthing. Here is a
sample of his work showing how difficult it can be to trace the background of our former residents.